1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to exercise equipment. More specifically, the invention relates to boxing exercise apparatus with multiple, independently adjustable exercise devices, including at least one object to be struck with the hands and/or feet, and means to attach the apparatus to a treadmill.
2. Prior Art
The benefits of exercise are universally recognized. However, because of changes in the workplace and home environments, people do not obtain enough exercise in connection with their normal daily activities. Consequently, myriad exercise equipment has been devised to meet the demand for convenient and effective devices and machines that enable these benefits to be realized.
Many people join health clubs or other facilities which offer a variety of exercise equipment and programs, while other people install exercise equipment in their homes or places of work. Primarily because of space limitations, it is particularly desirable that equipment installed in the home be capable of providing exercise for more than one muscle group. However, much of the available exercise equipment is designed for a single exercise, e.g., treadmills and stair-steppers are designed for exercising the legs. Other equipment, most notably that which simulates cross-country skiing, does provide for the simultaneous exercise of multiple muscle groups, but the range or type of exercises possible with such equipment is limited.
Examples of exercise equipment which has means for multiple exercises are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,928,089, 2,315,485, 3,332,683, 3,411,497, 4,569,401, 5,582,561, and 5,674,157. Some of these patents, i.e., U.S. Pat. No. 4,569,401, 5,582,561 and 5,674,157, disclose apparatus which enables simultaneous exercise of the legs and upper body or arms, and include pads or bags which may be struck with the hands and/or feet. U.S. Pat. No. 5,582,561 further discloses an apparatus which includes a treadmill and a punching device, in which the treadmill is carried by a rotatable platform, and in which the rotatable platform and treadmill are independently motor driven. The punching device may be adjusted for height and toward and away from the platform. The remaining patents generally permit only a single exercise at a time, but some of them, i.e., U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,928,089 and 3,411,497, can be adjusted to permit different exercises to be performed. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,31 5,485 and 3,332,683 disclose apparatus which includes a treadmill and resistance pads against which a person using the device pushes to obtain greater intensity of exercise of the legs.
Other U.S. Pat. Nos., e.g., 5,352,170 and 5,863,278, disclose boxing training devices which incorporate more than one punching bag or pad at different stations in the device, and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,352,170 at least some of the bags or pads are adjustable to different positions.
None of the prior art devices combines a boxing exercise device with a conventional treadmill, particularly with multiple punching devices which may be independently adjusted to plural positions for selective use, or which permits different types of punching devices to be substituted. In particular, none of the prior art devices has any means for supporting the apparatus on a conventional treadmill and for adjustably supporting a punching device in position to be used simultaneously with use of the treadmill.